The Kevin Sheehan Show - Top 10 QB List Minus Jayden

Episode Date: June 20, 2025

Kevin opened with a few responses to some wayward emailers. He got to the Yahoo Top 10 QB List that didn't include Commanders' QB Jayden Daniels. He recapped last night's Game 6 of the NBA Finals and looked ahead to Game 7 on Sunday Night. He talked Nats and Pete Prisco's NFL Top 100 Player rankings on CBSSports.com. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

You don't want it. You don't need it. But you're going to get it anyway. The Kevin Cheon Show. Here's Kevin. The show's presenting sponsors, always, Windonation, 86690 Nation, windownation.com if you need new windows. I did have a guest scheduled, but that guest bailed.

But I think we will get that gentleman on Monday's show. So I'm going to start the show with a couple of tweets. They're both tweets. actually. Will sent me a tweet that linked me to a question posed by Commander's Muse on Twitter. The question was, anyone else missed Taylor Heineke? And that question runs over, you know, kind of a highlight reel of Taylor Heineke in Washington. He had some highlights, no doubt, when he played here. And then I got this tweet from Sam 21 and for all. I guess that's

one and for all. Sam 21 and for all. Similar by the way to some of the correspondence that I got last week that I read, maybe a week and a half ago, Sam 21 and for all writes, I swear on my kids, Kevin, that if Adam Peters

doesn't get Terry in the fold, I'm out on this team. He's an all-time Redskin slash commander. You don't let someone like that leave and call your culture cured of Snyder. So the commander's muse thing on Taylor Heineke,

I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that it was an attempted humor. I'll move on from that. Other than to say that if it wasn't a joke, can you imagine how much PTSD, how much post-traumatic Snyder depression you have to have to suggest that, you know, people might be considering that they miss Taylor Heineke after the season the team had

and the quarterback of the team had last year. I mean, no offense to Taylor because Taylor was a total badass gamer and a really good guy and a really smart guy. Not a starting quarterback in the NFL, but everything about him was likable. There's no doubt. but can you imagine the level of post-traumatic Snyder syndrome you have to have to actually miss Taylor Heinecke. But back to the second tweet that I got from Sam 21 and for all. Why would you be out on your team if they decide that Terry isn't worth what he's asking for?

Like this doesn't make any sense to me at all. And I've gotten similar, you know, correspondence from others. And we, you know, we talked about it like a week and a half ago. First of all, like, when ownership changed, I may have been very premature to just be all in with, you know, benefit of the doubt. I said right from the beginning, I'm going to sit back. I'm going to give them benefit of the doubt. I mean, this is such a great position to be in, a position we never thought we would be. be in with Snyder gone and new ownership, and I'm going to let them figure it out. I mean,

this is a tear down. They've got to rebuild it from the ground up, and it's probably going to take some time. I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt. New ownership group, Dan Quinn's a proven guy. Adam Peters was the hottest guy on the market. Let's give them the benefit of the doubt. I can certainly understand why some people weren't all in with benefit of the doubt before last year. But how could you possibly not be in that mode now after the season they had? How could you possibly not trust them to handle a contract extension with a veteran player? I mean, Terry McClain and the team not reaching a deal would have you moving on like you're not going to be a fan to where? Why would that be a deal killer. You hung in there, Sam 21, for all of these years. And they finally deliver a season of joy.

And it's all for not because they don't extend Terry. Also, Sam, you like others seem to think that if it doesn't get worked out, Terry can just leave. That's not the case. If it doesn't get worked out, he's going to play in 2025. He is under contract for one more season. For some reason, some of you think that if they don't get Terry extended, he's gone. He's not leaving unless they were to trade him. And that seems to me to be a major long shot. But that would be their choice. He can't leave. He's under contract.

He's not going to hold out at 30 years old. And then, you know, potentially be in the same situation at the end of next season. Because if he doesn't play a certain number of games, the contract doesn't accrue. And he's right back to where, you know, he would be. he's not holding out. The realistic worst case, as I've mentioned, is that they don't get a deal done. And he plays 2025 on the final year of his deal.

And then, oh, by the way, if he plays really well and they want him back next year, they could slap the franchise tag on him next year. I don't think that's going to happen. I think he's going to sign a deal. I think it'll happen before training camp begins, you know, towards the end of next month. But if he doesn't, I just can't even fathom.

taking a side so strongly that it would impact my, you know, fandom for the team. I might disagree with them if they don't get him signed, but unlike the last regime, they've built up equity with me, man, trust equity. And the culture they've created might not be, you know, forever. It might not be long-lasting. But I would bet you that Terry's contract situation, regardless of whichever way it goes, is not going to impact the culture they created last year. You know, the culture they have right now is not going to change if Terry McCorn doesn't get extended.

I mean, would there be people that would look at them and say, man, you got to take care of your best player? Yeah, but there's more nuance to it. I think they want to take care of their best player. I just think they want to do it responsibly. And you get this every offseason with really good players who the team wants and the player wants to stay and you're trying to figure out where the right number is. But, you know, I trust this group. I really do to not give Terry some sort of contract that's out of whack with age and, you know, true position among receivers in the league. Also, Sam 21, let's be fair about Terry. I say this with the utmost respect, and I say this understanding that things can change and probably will.

He's not an all-time redskin commander. He could become an all-time guy in a few years, but he's not there yet. You know, let's take a little bit of an accounting of where Terry is at this point. He's fifth on the franchise list for receptions. in yards, eighth in touchdowns. That's not by anybody's definition all time on any franchise list. He's heading in the right direction. You know, all he needs really is another two seasons, like the season he had last year, 82 catches, another 1,000 yard season, and then the outlier for his career, 13 touchdowns. If he has another two seasons like last year, and then you combine that

with excellent team results. You know, playoff wins, maybe a Super Bowl trip, maybe a Super Bowl win. Now we're talking about all time. You know, he had 82 catches last year, 1,096 yards, the 13 touchdowns. Two more seasons like last year, he would be third all-time in receptions behind Art Monk and Charlie Taylor. He would be fourth all-time in yards behind Monk and Taylor, and he'd be third all-time in touchdown receptions behind Taylor and Monk.

So in two of the major three categories, he'd be third. That starts to get you into all-time, you know, for the franchise. By the way, Charlie Taylor's 79 all-time touchdown catches. He's not going to get there. Terry's only got 38 right now. I mean, he's not even halfway to Charlie Taylor's mark. And he's not going to catch Art Monk's 888 career receptions.

Terry, you know, has just barely more than half that at 460. He's also got basically half the yards that Monk has, or Monk had for his career. But he can move up significantly and etch his name on the list of the greatest receivers to ever play for this franchise with just two more seasons like the one he just had. But he's not there yet, Sam. And one last thing, Sam. The culture has been cured from the Snyder era. There's no going back to that. The people in charge are highly functioning, competent, empathetic people, human beings.

It's completely different than it was before. Come on, people. Stop thinking that last year was like a fluke or a head fake. We're not going back to the way it was. I'm not saying that last year is definitely a harbinger of things to come. Like, I'm guaranteeing consistent contention and winning. But last year was a clear signal, both in terms of ownership in front office, coaching staff, and then most importantly, quarterback,

that they have increased their chances exponentially for winning more than losing in the many years ahead of us. Doesn't guarantee anything because the NFL's fickle and there are things called injuries that do impact seasons and franchises. But the odds of them being a completely different franchise than they were for two plus decades are so much higher than they've been. All right. I'm going to get to the NBA finals.

I'll do that in the next segment, but I'm going to talk about something that I did talk about on radio today. And it's one of those, you know, June 20th stories or lists, rankings that kind of hit that really, you know, get people irritated. And the people that are irritated would be people who root for the burgundy and gold. This was a story in Yahoo yesterday. Charles McDonald, not Charles Robinson, Charles McDonald in Yahoo,

created his list of the top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL. He writes, Happy June, everybody. The quiet time of the NFL calendar is here before training camps to begin in about a month, which is a great time to survey the landscape prior to the upcoming season. With quarterbacks consistently being such a hot topic,

both start a fire and throw some gasoline on it by ranking the top 10 quarterbacks in the league. Of course, whenever you do these lists in a high profile way anyway, you're going to get, you know, disagreement. But this list is, I mean, part of me when I first read it thought he just wants the, you know, gasoline that lights the fire to create, you know, a shitstorm on the backside of it. Now, somebody, one of my callers told me that on a podcast, he, after ranking the top 10, said something about Jaden Daniels that I'll share with you in a moment. But here were Charles McDonald's quarterback rankings on June 20th from Yahoo Sports. He also, in this top 10, comes up with three tiers. The first tier is the Patrick Mahomes tier. And there's only one quarterback in the Patrick Mahomes tier.

And that is Patrick Mahomes, who was number one on his list. You know, Mahomes did not have his best season last year, but they still won 15 games and he was back in the Super Bowl with, you know, lots of injuries to receivers and running backs and, you know, O-Line, they had issues. And I still think Mahomes is the best quarterback in the game. I mean, he's done with the Chiefs in these years as a starter, you know, and then you look at, last year and they got decimated in, you know, they got absolutely destroyed in the Super Bowl, but they were decimated at times with injuries. And yet somehow he strapped it to his back. And they were better on defense. The year before, they were better on defense. And it wasn't necessarily offensive led, but the only reason they were there was him. They weren't getting

there without him. I have no problem ranking Mahomes number one. He's got his second tier, the almost Mahomes tier. And he's got two quarterbacks in. that tier. And he writes, and the two quarterbacks are Lamar Jackson at two, Josh Allen at three. And he writes, picking between Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen is an incredibly difficult task. They're both truly elite future Hall of Fame quarterbacks who significantly raise the floor and ceiling of their respective teams. Having Mahomes, Jackson, and Allen all in the same conference will lead to some agonizing legacy debates in the future. But they all make their team's competence simply by being on the field. Yeah, the AFC is loaded in quarterbacks.

NFC, not so much. Not that we know at this point. There are other quarterbacks lurking that could potentially be great, Caleb Williams, Bryce Young, Michael Pennix Jr. But the AFC is loaded with quarterbacks. So Tier 2 has two quarterbacks in it that gets him through his top three. Lamar Jackson at 2, Josh Allen at three. Then comes, by the way, he's got four tiers, my fault. Then comes Tier three. Tier three lists quarterback number four, five, and six. Quarterbacks four, five, and six. It's called the ceiling razor tier. And he writes that Joe Burrow at four, Justin Herbert at five, and Matthew Stafford at six, these three are bona fide franchise quarterbacks who can significantly raise this ceiling of an offense.

All three of them are capable of having explosive days through the air, and Herbert and Stafford specifically have a level of physical talent that really lets them be drivers of offensive production and firepower. Three tiers, six quarterbacks, no Jaden Daniels. Already a bad list, in my opinion. Then comes the fourth and final tier with quarterbacks seven through ten. The tier is called the floor razor tier. And he writes about these four quarterbacks,

who I will mention in a moment. These quarterbacks are good, but just a hair off from the rest of the players ranked above them. These guys have been good at creating competitive teams in adverse situations, though they're still a bit missing to get them into the upper echelon tier. In the right circumstances, these quarterbacks could probably lead their team on a deep run through the playoffs,

but we still need to see them do it a bit more. Number seven in this final floor razor tier, Dak Prescott. Number eight, Gino Smith. Number nine, Jordan Love. And number 10, C.J. Strout. No Jaden Daniels in the top 10. I have a feeling many of you have already seen this list.

It is certainly making the rounds. only with Washington fans, but there's no Jared Goff on this list. There's no Jalen Hertz on this list. There's no Brock Purdy on this list. I don't think Brock Purdy should be on the list. But let's talk a little bit about Jaden Daniels not being on this list. So what one of my callers told me was that there was a podcast associated with this list and my caller listened to it. and this guy Charles McDonald essentially said, I'm not considering Jaden Daniels because I don't think one year is enough. I mean, that's not unfair,

but that one year was such a crazy outlier. And that one year was from a winning standpoint, so much on him versus the rest of the team. I don't know how you could watch Jaden Daniels in 2024 and not think he belongs somewhere on this list. So I don't have a problem with Mahomes, Jackson, Allen, and even Burrow. I think, you know, those four are the four that definitely are debatable with Jaden. After that, I don't think anybody is worth debating in terms of would you rather have Jaden or Justin Herbert,

Jaden or Matt Stafford at this point. Jaden or Dak Prescott or Gino Smith or Jordan Love or C.J. Stroud. I just think Jaden right now is easily in the conversation for top five. I actually would put him at number four right now. I think the top two quarterbacks in the NFL are Mahomes and Allen. And then I think Burrow, Jackson, and Daniels are kind of in that next group. I'm not going to tear him out, but I would say that Mahomes and Allen, nobody in Kansas City, nobody in Buffalo would ever think about swapping either one of those two guys for anybody else in the league.

Hell, Buffalo fans wouldn't swap Allen for Mahomes more likely than not, even though they haven't been able to beat Mahomes. I just think those two have separated themselves a bit. and then Burrow and Lamar and Daniels are the next group. And for me, I'd have Burrow third. I'd have Jaden fourth and I'd have Lamar fifth. I'm a big Lamar Jackson fan, and the season he had last year was his best by far,

and he improved so significantly as a passer. But he's not the natural passer, the natural pocket quarter of, back that Jaden is. It's very hard to determine which of Jaden's skills, talents are his best, because you could make the case that actually what he does best is throw from the pocket. You could also make the case that what Jaden does best is, you know, get outside of the pocket and become a playmaker as a thrower or a runner. With Lamar Jackson, there is a clear best thing that he does. and it is

Lamar Jackson, the playmaker, the off-schedule runner and or thrower. It's not Lamar Jackson from the pocket, even though he improved significantly and looked so much better last year. He doesn't throw it as well as Jaden does.

Jaden's got a better throwing motion. He's got better footwork. He throws with better anticipation. He throws with better touch. He's just a better thrower. I would put Jaden ahead of Lamar. Now, if Lamar had the playoff success to go with the MVP's, I think that I would, you know, and by the way, this is in conflict with the conversation

about tying rings to quarterback play. But there's a difference with Lamar. It's not just that his team hasn't gotten over the hump. He hasn't played well in the postseason. He, by his own admission, said that he got tight before playoff games last year. Now, he didn't play poorly against Buffalo. He had two turnovers in that game, but he has not raised the level or even played at the level that he plays in the regular season in the postseason.

So you do take that into consideration when you're talking about Lamar Jackson. You have to until he plays great. Look, he could play great in playoff games this year, next year, 27, 28, 29, and not win a Super Bowl. and I could feel completely different about Lamar Jackson. But again, you go through the games in the postseason that he's played in. He hasn't played well, for the most part. I would put Jaden ahead of Lamar Jackson. If you told me today I get Lamar Jackson or I get Jaden Daniels,

I would take Jaden Daniels. It would be close. Lamar's gotten hurt. Jaden hasn't yet. Joe Burroughs gotten hurt. you know, and missed games. I still think Burrow is elite as a thrower. And, by the way, really good as a playmaker and an extender.

After that, as my top five, I mean, we're talking about, I'm a big Matt Stafford fan. Stafford's really, really good. Stafford's not Jaden Daniels. He's not Mahomes, Allen, Burrow, or Jackson. for me number seven, and I'd have Stafford at six, for me number seven, I'm a big Jordan Love guy. I think Jordan Love has everything that quarterbacks in 2025 need. He's got the big arm. He throws with a level of accuracy and anticipation that's awesome. He's phenomenal off schedule. He had a step back year last year from the year before. They still.

Bill won games and got to the postseason and had a chance at Philadelphia in that first round. I like Jordan Love. I then would go Hertz, Stroud, Gough as the rest of my top 10. Jalen Hertz is an interesting thing. I would never, I would never take Hertz over Jaden Daniels. Never. Hurtz needs the supporting cast. No doubt. He's not a strap it to his back guy for 17 games and throughout a postseason, but we have certainly seen Jalen Hertz consistently play at a very high level in the biggest games that Philadelphia's had. And I love that about Jalen Hertz.

I like C.J. Stroud a lot. I think Stroud is a talent. I think he's a top 10 guy. And then I'd go with Goff in front of, you know, a guy like Purdy or Trevor Lawrence or Baker Mayfield. You know, we'll see what happens in the coming years. I think, you know, you could throw a lot of guys in that sort of seven to ten range. You know, I think there are a lot of guys that could be in the hunt for that. I think the top two, Mahomes and Allen.

I think the next three are Burrough Daniels and Lamar. And then I think Stafford, to me, is. above the rest after what I would call five elite level quarterbacks. Stafford certainly has the ability to play at an elite level. Would not surprise me if this coming season with Devante Adams and Pooka Nakua, if this is a big year for the Rams and a big year for Stafford. Stafford's got to be healthy. Remember, there have been issues with his health. Let's not forget, Matthew Stafford's 37 years old. You know, he's been in the league for a while. But, you know, when they needed it last year, he played really well.

The game and the shootout that he had with Josh Allen in that December game out in L.A., what was it, 48, 45 or something like that, he was sensational. He was great in the playoff game at Philly in the snow. Almost led them back. They were the closest to knocking off Philadelphia. And he was phenomenal in that playoff game against Minnesota. which, you know, that was more about Sam Darnold's ineptitude. One thing is absolutely true, though. The AFC's loaded with elite quarterbacks.

The NFC right now, there isn't a quarterback in the NFC better than Jaden Daniels that you would want in front of Jaden Daniels. I mean, Stafford and Hertz and, you know, Jordan Love is a talent and young, and Goff is a great system quarterback, and Baker Mayfields is tough as they come. And who knows what we're going to see from Caleb Williams. Who knows what's coming with Jordan Love? I think he's an interesting one to watch. We don't know anything about, you know, J.J. McCarthy.

I think Pennix Jr., you know, he was number three for me last year after Jaden and Caleb. I think he's going to be exceptional. Bryce Young, he showed something last year at times. The story's far from written on him. But right now, based on what we know, I mean, there's nobody close to Jaden in the NFC. All right, I'll talk NBA finals game six and look ahead to Sunday nights game seven after these words from a few of our sponsors. So guys, if you're starting to notice your hair thinning when you look in the mirror, join the club. You're not alone.

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Restrictions apply. See website for full details and important safety information. The magic carpet ride for the paces is not over. They'll play for an NBA title on Sunday night in game seven. Mike Breen with the call as the final seconds of the game 6 o'clock last night in Indianapolis ticked off. We've got a game 7 Sunday night in Oklahoma City. First game 7 in the NBA finals since 2016. If you want to bet the NBA finals game 7, do it at MyBooky. Go to mybooky. or MyBooky.com.

First things first, use my promo code when you sign up. The promo code is Kevin D.C. MyBooky will give you a cash bonus, free money into your account when you deposit for the first time. They've got everything you need for game seven. Currently, Oklahoma City is a seven and a half point favorite. The totals at 215. They'll have all of the player in team prop bets up by Sunday.

morning, I would assume no later than Sunday morning. They may have them up by tomorrow. My bookie's got everything you need. They've got everything you need for the upcoming NFL season. I was looking at something right before the show started. They have certain games in the NFL season beyond weeks one and two. All of the point spreads for weeks one and two are up. They've got a point spread on Washington's game in Madrid against the dolphins. You can bet, now, Washington or Miami, the line is four and a half. Washington's a four and a half point favorite this far in advance of that game on November 16th in Madrid. They've got the Cowboys Chiefs Thanksgiving lineup. Kansas City's a six-point favorite over Dallas. Yeah, you can bet

some of those games right now. It's kind of insane to do so because you really don't have much of an idea of what those teams will look like by the time you get to that moment. But you can certainly look at week one and you can look at some preseason lines as well. Those are starting to go up at MyBooky. Washington, six and a half point favorites over the Giants in the season opener on Sunday, September 7th in Landover. MyBooky.orgie.com if you want to bet on sports. So, Game 6 goes to Indiana. and it wasn't close.

They led by 30 at times. The final margin of victory 17 was not, you know, reflective at all of how much of a blowout this was. I'll start with this. It was a pitiful effort by Oklahoma City. It was an immature effort by Oklahoma City. This is a young team. This is their first finals.

This is a team that was a massive. favorite, fifth largest favorite in NBA finals history when the series began. Nobody thought this series was going to go the distance. And it is. Some people did. But, you know, the odds makers, the experts, so-called, all loved the thunder and the thunder in short order. As this series has gone on, I've changed my mind. I was dead wrong. I was one of those people along with the odds makers that just thought Oklahoma City was much better than Indiana, that Indiana had not faced anything resembling Oklahoma City defensively, certainly not against the Knicks or the Cavs, and that it would be a rude awakening. And it has been at times, but Indiana's been awesome. And the story going into the game last

night was Tyrese Halliburton. He was awesome. He looked healthy. He played really well, especially in that decisive second quarter. And he only had to go 23 minutes. So he'll get another couple of days to rest, and Indiana will take their best swing on Sunday night. But I have to start with just how bad Oklahoma City was. Now, they didn't play a great game in game three after taking a two-nothing series lead in the Western Conference Finals against Minnesota. They lost that game by 42. You know, that was an immature effort as well, but it was game three. They had a two-nothing series lead. And that happens sometimes in the NBA playoffs.

You'll see when venues change for the first time in a series. Sometimes the series looks completely different for a game. And it did in that moment in the Western Conference Finals. They got blown out by Denver in Game 6, but came back in Game 7 and won handily. But last night was a chance to win a championship. They were one win away. You know, there's no guarantee of a game seven. This was such a poor effort.

There was no urgency whatsoever. Their best player, the league MVP, Shea Gilgis Alexander, was horrible in this game. If you just read a box score and say, oh, you had 21 points on 7 of 15 shooting, that's not that. He had eight turnovers. Eight. It could have been 11 or 12.

He was terrible last night. In fact, I thought he was the worst player on the floor for Oklahoma City. I mean, he's a superstar. He's been their MVP. He's been the league MVP. He was not ready for the game, nor was Jalen Williams off that 40-point game in game 5. Do you know what Jalen Williams' plus minus was in the game last night? Minus 40.

He had 40 points in game 5. and then his plus minus was minus 40. It was an interesting game in that we've seen the defensive pressure, both teams. I said after game four, I think, I can't remember ever watching an NBA game, regular season or postseason, where both teams basically full court pressed throughout the game. That didn't happen last night. Indiana did not pick up full court. They picked up half court and made it.

really difficult for Oklahoma City. Indiana's defense has been excellent throughout the postseason and in this series. Oklahoma City had 21 turnovers in the game. Shea Gilgis Alexander, eight of them, could have been a lot more than just eight. They were so sloppy with the basketball. Indiana's defense gets some of the credit because, look, they were credited for 16 steals in the game. Their defense was excellent. But Oklahoma City, I start there. They were horrible last night. They are a young team that has advanced to the finals.

Before the playoffs started, I felt like, you know, Oklahoma City had a great regular season, but typically, you know, mature experience teams win titles. I changed my mind early on in the playoffs. I was witnessing something that was different, especially on the defensive end. They couldn't guard last night. They couldn't, you know, set up any sort of structured half-court offense.

They're not very structured in their half-court sets. Rick Carlisle is a better coach than Mark Dagnall. He just is. But Oklahoma City is excellent as a defensive team, and that's where they generate a lot of their offense. They couldn't do it last night. God, they look terrible. And then you flip it over to Indiana.

They played great. They were ready for the moment. Halliburton, you know, if they were playing possum with the calf strain, they did a really nice job because he looked unfazed. He only had to play 23 minutes because it was such a lopsided game. But 14 points, 5 assists, two steals in 23 minutes. He was aggressive. He got downhill.

He was very good. Pascal Seacum, excellent last night. Again, didn't have to play the normal number of minutes. 16 points, 13 rebounds in 32 minutes. A hellacious dunk at the end of the first half. Nemhart's defense and shooting was excellent. You know, once again, T.J. McConnell has just been outstanding in these playoffs and in these NBA finals, 12 points, six assists,

nine rebounds, four steals in 24 minutes. I actually have come to the conclusion that if, for whatever reason, Halliburton was legitimately hurt and couldn't play, they'd still have a chance with McConnell. Now, players who end up playing 40 minutes sometimes aren't the same players that play in that 18 to 24 minute range off the bench. But he has been exceptional in this series. They were great. They were really good last night. They deserved it.

The game was never in doubt. The problem with this series is at times it's been, the intensity has been ferocious start to finishes I've discussed, you know, going back to game one. But they're just, we haven't had good games at the end. We've had blowouts. You know, last night was a blowout. Game five was actually a thrilling game, 2, 2, and it was a two-point game with eight and a half to go,

but the thunder pulled away, and they won by 11. You know, game 4 was a 7-point game, game 3 was a 9-point game. Game 2 was a blowout, 16-point game. The moment of the series was the comeback in the steal of Game 1 by Indiana, which is really why we're here and why the series isn't over. at this point because that was flukish, much more flukish than the game four comeback by Oklahoma City. I mean, if you added up all the minutes in the six games, it's pretty damn close. You know, I said I think after game four or, you know, or after game three, this thing's going

seven. I was totally wrong about Indiana's matchup against Oklahoma City. I have no idea what happens in game seven. I can tell you this, the thunder will come out with, a much better effort. And they prove that and they've got something to lean on with their game seven blowout of Denver after Denver won game six convincingly to force a game seven. They will play well at home. They're not going to turn it over 21 times. But it doesn't mean that I think that they are a lock to win this game. I think Indiana is totally capable of being right there. The key, if they're going to get the thunder's best, and I think they will, is they've got to knock down threes. You know, last night they, uh, they, they shot the three exceptionally well. Uh, they ended up

making, you know, 15 threes last night. Uh, you know, the percentage wasn't great. It was 15 to 42. At one point, Oklahoma City was one for 15, I believe. They were eight for 30, but that was all in the fourth quarter with their subs with the game, uh, out of reach. Um, if Indiana, and man, they moved the basketball well. And if Halliburton's healthy, because that leads to a lot of movement and the initiation. But if you get Obie Toppin knocking down threes like he has in some of their wins, you know, Nempard and Halliburton and Siakum and Meese Smith, and they make threes even if they're contested.

This thing may be the game that we've been waiting for, like a real memorable moment. Game one was memorable the way they came back. But maybe this series will end with a game. Game 7 classic, because we haven't had a classic. We've had intense defense. We've had some very good basketball at times. We've had really good basketball by both teams simultaneously, but it's kind of, by the time you've gotten to those last few minutes of the fourth quarter, it's become one-sided. Last night was one-sided pretty much from the jump. I think OKC had like an eight to two lead early,

and then it was over. The second quarter did him in. I was so disappointed with O'C., Oklahoma City's third quarter effort. They came out. They were just hoisting up threes. They actually were getting stops. It was really, it was an alarming, you know, result, alarming if you're an Oklahoma City fan. Because I'm not expecting them to play that way, but it was very immature with a championship on the line last night.

You know, and maybe this will be one that they'll look back on and say, you know, in future years, if they end up being the annual contender that I think they're capable of being. Remember that game six, we're going to take advantage of an opportunity to win a championship, you know, if we're talking next year or the year after. I don't have a pick for Sunday night. I think if I were forced to bet it, the line is once again high, although it's the shortest that it's been for a game in Oklahoma City. but the public, I think, is going to be on Indiana.

We've seen basically three, three. Oklahoma City's covered three games. Indiana's covered in three games. But remember, Indiana's been an underdog in all three, so they've won three games outright as an underdog. I could see Indiana playing really well, being the better coach team, and winning game seven on the road.

I could see it. I'm going to pick Oklahoma City barely. I don't feel great about it. I'm not betting the game. No way, am I going to bet the game? I would love to see both teams at their best Sunday night. I think if both teams are at their best, Oklahoma City wins. But I think it could be a very close game seven. I'm hoping for that anyway. 2016 was the last time we had a game seven in the NBA finals.

That was the series in which Cleveland was down 3-1 to Golden State. Draymond Green got suspended for game five, and that probably was the difference maker. Kyrie was great in game seven. So was LeBron. LeBron had that triple double and had the big block, had multiple blocks in the game. It's amazing, as I look back on the list of game sevens, there haven't been many. This will be the eighth game seven in the NBA finals since 1984. I mean, eight over the last 41 years. That's it.

You know, maybe that's part of the problem with the NBA. You know, if they had had more game sevens in the championship series, more memorable game sevens, the 84 NBA finals, Lakers Celtics, that was, you know, an epic series. Pistons Lakers, that was the, in 88 was when Isaiah Thomas got hurt, forced the game seven. He was great in game six. but the Lakers won. That was the last for Kareem. Knicks Rockets in 94, Piston, Spurs, and 05, Celtics Lakers in 2010. Spurs Heat, what a game seven. That was with LeBron having a big-time game seven and big-time threes in that game late. And then Cavs Warriors in 2016. So it's been

nine years since we've had a game seven in the NBA finals. I don't know how many people are watching it, but it's game seven of anything. Game seven is awesome. I hope the game matches sort of the stage that will be set for it. All right, when we come back, a couple of other things to finish up the show with, including the incredible night last night or day for James Wood. We'll do that after these words from a few of our sponsors.

James Wood with two outs and one on in the bottom of the 11th called by Bob Carpenter on Mass, it was his second home run of the day. The Nats end, the 11 game losing skid, getting one against Colorado, four to three. The final James Woods got 20 home runs on the season. This segment of the show brought to you by Window Nation. If you've been thinking about new windows, beat the heat, and it is coming. Call Window Nation at 86690 Nation. head to windownation.com.

Get a free estimate. Get them to come out in an hour or less when it's convenient for you to see which windows in your home aren't good enough from an insulation standpoint to keep your air conditioning bills down. We've got a major heat wave coming next week. Beat the heat with Window Nation's semi-annual sale. You get four free windows with every four purchased

and you don't have to pay anything for two full, years, no money down, no payments, and no interest charged until 2027. Plus, if you get a house full of windows, you'll get a free exterior door. You get a lifetime warranty on these windows. Just give them a chance to come out and give you an estimate. 86690 Nation, windownation.com. James Wood is on pace right now for 43 plus home runs. The most home runs in a season by Washington National. Alfonso Soriano in 2006 had 46 home runs. If you're talking about Washington baseball history, Frank Howard, 1969 with the senators, had 48 home runs. James Wood is certainly making Mike Rizzo and the trading away of all those players,

Trey Turner, Juan Soto, etc. They've got a new version. of Juan Soto. James James Wood is having an all-star season, an unbelievable breakout season. He's hitting 284. He's got 20 homers, 56 RBIs. His OPS is 944. His slugging percentage is 564. He is having an unbelievable season.

6-7-240, went to St. John's on Military Road for high school, grew up in the area. He is a true superstar. in the making. And he is the draw right now. Now, Mackenzie Gore is a hell of a pitcher, so when he starts, it's fun to go out and watch him pitch. He's pitching tonight against Clayton Kershaw in L.A. By the way, a series against the Dodgers in which

Shohei Otani is projected to start Sunday on the mound against the Nats. Just nice to see that losing skid come to an end. Man, four in a row to Colorado. Look, three out of four. is pretty bad. And they were one pitch away from a sweep against the Nats. But wow, what a season James Wood is having for the Nats. One more thing that I wanted to finish up with, because we talked about Jaden Daniels in the opening segment and the ridiculous omission of him from Charles McDonald's top 10 list of quarterbacks. And yes, apparently he did say in a podcast that it

he didn't consider Jaden because it was just one season, whatever. We've seen Jaden ranked pretty high. We saw him ranked number six on PFF's list of quarterbacks entering the 2025 season. A couple of others are out there with Jaden, you know, in that five to eight range. Pete Priscoe does every year an NFL top 100 player list. And that list came out yesterday. Now, let me just tell you, three players are. on Pete Priscoe's top 100 NFL player list. Jaden Daniels being the highest ranked at 33 overall. Jaden is at 33.

Terry is at 81 and Bobby Wagner's at 88. So those are the three Washington players and Pete Priscoe's NFL Top 100 list. We'll get the NFL.com NFL Network players vote of the top 100 players. I think at some point in July. But Priscoe had Jaden as the fifth ranked quarterback. Now, he had Patrick Mahomes number one overall, Josh Allen, number four overall,

Lamar Jackson, number six overall, and Joe Burrow number seven overall. So he's got some distance between the top four and his number five quarterback, Jaden Daniels, as the 33rd best player. in the NFL. And he writes, Daniel showed as a rookie that he has star potential and should be a top level quarterback for a long time. It's scary to think how good he can be once he learns how to really play the position. I think he played it at a pretty high level. I don't know what else he has

to learn. Obviously, experience will come. But yeah, not only that, the next quarterback on the list doesn't come until Justin Herbert is listed at number 49. So, There's some distance between Jaden and the next quarterback who would be number six on the list, Justin Herbert. I mentioned Bobby Wagner at 88. Terry McClureen comes in at 81 on this list. He's the 12th ranked receiver in the NFL on this list. These are lists, rankings, opinions, subjective. But the receivers in front of Terry, Justin Jefferson, Jamar Chase, C.D. Lamb,

Tarek Hill, A.J. Brown. Brian Thomas Jr. in Jacksonville. Malik neighbors. Amon Rae St. Brown, Puka, Nukua, Nikkoe, and T. Higgins. Those 11 were ahead of Terry. Terry was one spot ahead of Mike Evans, who was at 82. And then Devante Adams was at 91. And McConkey, Ladd McConkey, was at 93. So overall, 15 receivers in Prisco's top 100 players. but Terry 81 overall 12th rated receiver. I would have had him at this point in front of Brian Thomas Jr., understanding what a great rookie season Brian Thomas Jr. had. But I'd have him in front of Brian Thomas Jr. I'd have him in front of T. Higgins, and that would put him at 10 on my list. Although, to be honest with you, Mike Evans might be slightly ahead of Terry on my list, so I might have him at 11.

But I would definitely have Jefferson Chase, Brown, Lamb and Hill, still yes. Neighbors is a little bit questionable, but I think Neighbors has super, Superstar potential. Let's see what he looks like with a quarterback. Nico Collins, I mean, big target. He can take over games. Terry's, he's plus or minus two from the 10 spot on receivers in the league.

And that's where you're going to see him consistently ranked. He was 10 in the PFF ranking of wide receivers a few weeks back. All right, that is it for the show. Enjoy your weekend back on Monday.